Spicy Parmesan Ranch Chicken Tenders

A cheesy coating makes these Spicy Parmesan Ranch Chicken Tenders a delicious dinner the whole family will love. Dipping the breaded chicken tenders in a spicy ranch dressing gives them an extra fun kick in taste.

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As a family with three children, we have gone through our fair share of chicken nuggets and dipping sauces over the years from various fast food restaurants.

Ok, fine even I am guilty of ordering chicken nuggets for dinner when we go to McD’s…and that was just the other week. Don’t judge me…I had a salad with them 😉

The other day my husband and I were picking up some groceries from Sam’s Club. Anyone else love sample day? You know it’s going to be a good trip when you see all those booths lined up down the aisles. You also know you are bound to see and hear some funny things.

That day they were sampling the dino shaped chicken nuggets. We happened to walk by that booth and overheard a customer talking to the worker. “So, what’s in these?” “Oh, it’s chicken?” “But they are shaped like dinos?”

My husband is convinced this lady thought those dino nuggets really were made with dino meat because why else would she seem so surprised to find out they were chicken. We may have laughed like crazy all around the store…it was seriously so funny!

Or she was a professional sampler. You know the ones, right? They walk up to see what the sample is and then act like it is something they have never seen or tried before. Don’t try to act like you haven’t done that too. “Oh, what is this?” “Popcorn?” “Why no, I have never tried that before.” Ok, so maybe that’s being a little too silly.

Because eating out or buying chicken nuggets all the time can be pricy, I like to make these easy baked chicken tenders at home. You can bump up the spicy flavor by adding some hot sauce to the buttermilk that you marinate the chicken in. Adding cheese and Ranch powder to the breadcrumbs make these chicken tenders taste that much better.

My family went crazy for these spicy Parmesan Ranch chicken tenders. I’m thinking with 3 hungry kids, I am going to need to double the batch next time if I went leftovers. These chicken tenders will be perfect for all those salads that I have been eating.

DINO MEAT. LOL! I was totally laughing out loud at that part. Seriously, what the heck? I cannot even imagine thinking that was dino meat. But I totally agree with you on sample day – I try to get as many samples as humanly possible without feeling totally gluttonous 🙂 These chicken tenders look like a total money saver and sound way better than dino nuggets… or their chicken counterpart!

Yep, they look good and much healthier than the fast food ones…..but if you like McDonald’s, you gotta try Wendy’s…..they have the best ever…….and it is 100 % chicken……I don’t know about McDonald’s now, but they used to be horrible…..wasn’t chicken….but some kind of chicken flavor fillers…..yuk so bad…..
But I will try these, don’t need all the grease 🙂

Yes! I love the combination of parmesan and ranch together. The samples at wholesale stores are the best. There’s a grocery store in CT that isn’t wholesale, but they give out the best samples of cheese, homemade apple cider donuts, and other goodies. I can eat a meal just from the samples. I’m 24 and I would be happy eating chicken tenders every night of the week 😀

This is my first time visiting your lovely website and while I originally stopped by to pin another recipe, I must say I’m even more excited about these spicy parmesan ranch chicken tenders! This recipe has pretty much all of my boyfriend’s favorite flavors so I think that means I have to make these for dinner this week! Thanks for creating such a great recipe. I’ll be sure to come back to share how they turned out when I make them. Looking forward to becoming a regular reader.

Just wanted to stop back by and tell you that this recipe turned out wonderfully. The flavors were all present and accounted for and the chicken was absolutely moist and delicious. The recipe came together so quickly and, other than the buttermilk, I like that the ingredients are ones I usually have on hand without an extra trip to the store. I ended up freezing the leftover buttermilk in one-tablespoon measures in an ice tray and then storing the cubes in a freezer bag so it’s not wasted.

I will definitely be adding this recipe to my regular rotation and look forward to trying more recipes from your site!

Jocelyn is the baker, photographer, and writer behind Inside BruCrew Life. She is married to her best friend, and they have three great kids. She spends her days baking sweet treats, and then trying to find ways to give the treats away without eating them all. Grab a cup of coffee and visit while she shares life from their kitchen. Read More…